Dear Lee Zii Jia, are you okay?
A question many followers of Lee Zii Jia have been asking after the Malaysian badminton player posted a series of mysterious illustrations without a caption on his Instagram account last night (July 3). Concerned social media users were left riddled and wondering if the man was hinting at his mental health conditions.
In general, the images illustrate various faceless figures seemingly depicting themes of mental anguish and identity struggles, including a motionless figure on a couch with exposed brain matter and impaled by sharp objects, a faceless figure threading a needle through its own head, and another of a figure with its head tilted back and face on fire.
Concerns were sparked further when Zii Jia also changed his profile picture to a dark screen and sealed off his comments section.
Lee proved 2024 to be his breakthrough year after he broke his record of winning only one title a year by taking the second one during the 2024 Australian Open. At the 2024 Summer Olympics, Lee took home a bronze medal after defeating India’s Lakshya Sen.
The last time Zii Jia played was at the All-England Championship in March, where he lost in the first round.
“Are you okay, bro?”
Netizens, on the other hand, showed compassion and empathy, with some also offering supportive words to keep Zii Jia motivated.
“Let’s fight our way out.”
“You’re doing great. Ignore the other voices, and don’t pressure yourself too much. Keep being yourself.”
“Sometimes, we tend to be fearful and feel insecure when we encounter something we don’t understand, so please don’t see this as a form of destruction. It can be a healing process.”
Regardless, we hope Lee Zii Jia gets the time and space he needs to recover from the unspoken dilemma he has.
Also read: “My next goal is to make Malaysia’s Olympics gold medal dream come true” Lee Zii Jia Tells M’sians
